La tradición culinaria rusa en las novelas de Nabokov

According to Stegner (1967: 21), Nabokov is one of the masters of the contemporary literature. The Russian culture determines the interpretation of Nabokov’s novels since they clearly require an initiated reader (Ross, 1979: 391; Tammi, 1985: 244; Barreras Gómez, 2005: 121). In the Nabokov’s works, the Russian traditional food is a varied and highly functional element that stands out from other cultural components. Besides, Nabokov considers the Russian food as an essential part of the daily life of his mother country. The purpose of this paper is to discuss the influence of the Russian traditional food in Nabokov’s novels. In our research, we identify the most representative national dishes, traditional kitchen utensils, as well as some food-related traditions and customs, considering its functions in the novels. We discuss the Russian food as a highly productive linguistic and intertextual resource. Nabokov creates puns and new words and draws intertextual connection with the Russian literature. The paper also pays attention to the methods Nabokov uses to introduce the Russian food in his novels.